Excerpt for BECOMING FAMILY
A twig crunched behind her and Tabitha spun around, the pulse in her neck going crazy.
“It’s okay, Tabby.” Hobbs was there, slipping a leash on Humphrey, who had apparently followed Trinity outside. The old beagle tilted his muzzle in the air, sniffing, his cataracts shining in the dim light of a distant streetlamp. “Rhett’s so busy cleaning up he didn’t even notice his dog left the building.” Hobbs rolled his eyes. He’d shed most of his costume, and now just looked like a muscular guy in jeans and a flannel shirt. Though it was cold, he had his sleeves rolled up, neck unbuttoned. He looked thick, warm and inviting. “You okay?”
“Um. Yeah.” Tabitha realized she was just stupidly standing there, staring. Trinity had finished her business and now trotted over to Humphrey. She wanted to sniff his ears, but Humphrey had other ideas, trying to get around to her backside.
“Dirty old man,” Hobbs said. He turned back to Tabitha, his humor fading a little. “Good catch back there. With Carrie and her shitfaced date. Things were about to get ugly.”
Tabitha tried to shrug it off, even though she felt a rush of pleasure at the compliment. “Old habits die hard. I was Religious Affairs in the navy. Hypervigilance was necessary in Afghanistan. Protect the chaplain.”
“I knew you were a secret badass.”
Tabitha waved that off. “You spotted trouble, too.”
“I, uh—” Hobbs smiled uncomfortably “—learned early on in life to read the room or suffer the consequences.” Hobbs’s eyes narrowed. “You sure you’re all right?” He looked toward the woods, like he might be remembering the incident with the fireworks, too.
“Yeah.” The word came a little too quick. “I just—” she shrugged “—feel a little…in between.” Made no sense, but Tabitha didn’t know how to explain it any better. She wasn’t a kid anymore. But she wasn’t accomplished enough to say she felt mature, either. She had a light service record, no romantic relationship, no kids, not even a job she was good at. She thought about Hobbs’s question, after they’d shot the second tequila. “Remember when you asked me if it felt good to let go?”
“Sure.”
“I was thinking that letting go implies I’ve been hanging on,” she said. “If I’m hanging on, I’m either trying to stay in place, like clinging to a tree during a hurricane, or trying to go somewhere, like grabbing on to the tail of a kite to hitch a ride. Both are hanging on, but are completely different kinds of hanging on. Letting go in each scenario would mean something different. So I was wondering which way you meant it.”
Humor crinkled Hobbs’s eyes and a laugh escaped him so quickly it sounded almost like a cough. “Jeez, Tabby,” he said. “I was only telling you to have a little fun. There was no deep meaning.”
The steady thump of party music that rang out from the gym slowed down, ceding to a warm, sweet `80s tune that was most definitely not the Halloween station on Pandora. Somebody had changed the channel to do a slow dance. Tabitha’s money was on Sunny.
“I meant, have a little tequila,” Hobbs explained. “Or—” he dropped Humphrey’s leash and took her by the wrist “—have a slow dance or two.” Hobbs gave a little tug and drew her in.
Tabitha swayed on her feet she was so surprised. Hobbs’s free arm slid around her waist and steadied her. All the tequila had left her system long ago, but her head was suddenly swimming again. Hobbs’s flannel shirt was soft, and up close he smelled like he’d dressed for the party directly after taking a warm, soapy shower.
“When I said let go,” Hobbs continued, his voice softer, closer to Tabitha’s ear as he pulled her even tighter against him, “I meant enjoy your birthday. Stop worrying so much. Have a drink. Have a dance.” After a moment of quiet dancing, Tabitha’s heart beating too hard in her ears for her to do anything but follow Hobbs’s lead, he added, “Have a kiss.”
“A kiss?” That hot-cold sensation raced down her spine. Tabitha turned her face up. Hobbs wasn’t supertall like Rhett, but he was just tall enough. Hobbs was watching her, a sparkle in his warm eyes. She searched them for a sign that he’d continued to drink tequila long after the last shot they’d shared.
“Sure, everyone should get a kiss on their birthday.”
Words started and stopped in Tabitha’s throat. Yeah, he’d had a few more tequilas, but he was only happy with the liquor, not swimming in it. She tried to decide if she cared. She imagined herself saying something witty and sexy, like, Are you volunteering? But, in typical Tabitha fashion, nothing came out. Her body stiffened against Hobbs’s firm chest and quads, which she could feel beneath the flimsy gingham dress.
Hobbs’s dancing slowed. “I didn’t mean from me, of course.”
Was he backpedaling? Or clarifying? “It’s either you or my Auntie El,” Tabitha blurted.
Sure. As soon as she found her voice, that’s what popped out. Probably for the best. Every kiss she’d had since her time in Afghanistan had been a disaster in one form or another, anyway. “Auntie El raised me,” she continued, unable to stop her babbling. “I’m adopted.”
Hobbs’s eyes crinkled again. He was probably the only man on the planet that could make eye crinkles look youthful. “Well,” he said, brushing his forefinger beneath her chin. The sensation wriggled all the way from her skin to deep inside her body. “I can only speak for me, but I don’t want a kiss from my aunt on my birthday.”
Tabitha frantically tried to keep her knees from buckling as she thought about how close Hobbs’s lips were to hers. Her pulse rose, and she braced herself for that terrible, crushing feeling where she couldn’t get air into her lungs.
It didn’t come.
“Have you thought about it?” Hobbs said.
“What?”
“Kissing me.”
“Yes. No.” She’d fantasized about kissing Hobbs more times than she could count, but she wouldn’t admit that to anyone, least of all him. “No.” Tabitha sort of felt like she already was. Their lips were so close his breath tickled over her skin. Why was she not panicking?
“I have.” He seemed to have no embarrassment in the admission. “Can I try? I just want to see. I’m curious.”
“Curious about kissing me?”
Hobbs laughed a little bit. “You’re funny, Tabby.”
“Okay.” It might’ve been a whisper.
Hobbs took that as permission, even though Tabitha still wasn’t sure if she meant Okay, I’m funny, or Okay, you can kiss me. He closed the small amount of space left between them until his lips touched hers. His mouth was soft, warm, a little wet and very sweet. Tabitha’s eyes closed and her body leaned in harder. Hobbs’s hand went to the small of her back. His other hand slid to the back of her neck and held her still so he could gently kiss her mouth one, two, three times, little teasing kisses that made her go limp in his arms. He suckled against her lower lip, his thumb doing something crazy soft against her jawline. Her body melted into the front of him, her arms going around his waist. He kissed her a little harder, a little deeper. A soft noise of satisfaction escaped Tabitha’s throat. Never in her life would she have expected Hobbs to be so gentle. Never in her life had a kiss been this inviting, like Hobbs was a romantic stranger knocking softly on her door to ask permission to court her.
Suddenly, he pulled back. Tabitha’s eyes shot open, like someone had turned the water in the shower from hot to cold. Hobbs was looking at her. The smile was still in his eyes, but something had changed in his expression.
“What’s wrong?” Tabitha said. When he didn’t answer right away she added, “Was it what you thought?”
“No.”
“Oh.” Great. The best kiss she’d ever had in her life and she’d messed it up somehow.
“Hey!” Rhett’s sharp voice barked out from the raised bay door of the gym. “One of you have my dog?” His tall silhouette peered into the night. Tabitha glanced down and saw that Humphrey and Trinity had lain near each other on the grass, patiently waiting for their owners to stop acting like teenagers hiding behind the school gym.
“Got him!” Hobbs called. “Bringing him in now!”
Once Rhett disappeared, Hobbs drew off his flannel and draped it around Tabitha’s shoulders. She hadn’t realized she was shaking until the warmth enveloped her shoulders, though she didn’t have the courage to tell him that it wasn’t the cold making her tremble. Hobbs wore a white T-shirt beneath. The short sleeves gripped the biceps and pecs he was so proud of, but at this moment, Tabitha wasn’t complaining about his fitness obsession. “Let’s get you inside before you freeze, Tabby.”
Copyright © Elysia Whisler with permission from MIRA/Harlequin
BECOMING FAMILY by Elysia Whisler
Family is a feeling
There’s nothing like an important birthday to make a person realize all the things they haven’t accomplished. As Tabitha Steele blows out thirty candles, she makes a wish to take charge of her life. It’s a tall order, considering she doesn’t have much to show for herself since leaving military service: she works at a motorcycle shop but has never even ridden a motorcyle; she’s floundering in massage school; her social life consists of her aunt and her gym buddies; and her closest relationship is with Trinity, the service dog who helps her manage every day. She feels like an imposter in every aspect of her own life.
Playful and wild-hearted gym coach Chris Hobbs is Tabitha’s opposite. He likes to keep things fun and temporary, which is why he’s never tried to move the deepening friendship he has with Tabitha into anything more. But he’s the perfect person to help Tabitha discover her strengths. Then the sudden reappearance of his estranged brother forces Chris to face his past and the vulnerable part of himself behind the party-boy persona. And that includes letting Tabitha in.
As difficult as it is for Tabitha and Chris to leave the old definitions of themselves behind, the journey is better with someone special at their sides, becoming who they’re meant to be, together.
Women’s Fiction [MIRA, On Sale: August 16, 2022, Trade Size / e-Book, ISBN: 9780778386469 / eISBN: 9780369720740]
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About Elysia Whisler
Elysia Whisler was raised in Texas, Italy, Alaska, Mississippi, Nebraska, Hawai’i, and Virginia, in true military fashion. Her nomadic life has made storytelling a compulsion from a young age. Her work as a massage therapist, with CAUSE-USA, and as a CrossFit Level 2 Trainer and USAW Level 2 trainer, lends authenticity and heart to her stories.
Elysia is dedicated to portraying strong women, both in life and in her works. She lives in Virginia with her family, including her large brood of cat and dog rescues, who vastly outnumber the humans.
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